Cats On The Ocean City Beach? It’s A Thing, Apparently

I had a bit of free time on my hands yesterday, and it was such a gorgeous day outside, so I decided to spend my afternoon with my toes in the sand.

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I drove down to Ocean City, made my way to the end of the island, parked around 59th and Central Avenue, and made my way onto Ocean City's free beach, Corson's Inlet State Park. I expected to witness things like families enjoying a nice beach day, kids digging in the sand, and maybe a boogie board or two. Never, I repeat, NEVER in a million years would I have predicted to see what I saw next.

I got up from the beach to go use the restrooms located near 59th street. As I walking down the street, I saw a couple walk past me with a backpack on that almost made the young woman look like a spaceman. It had a big clear cut-out so you could see what was inside the bag, as well a few smaller clear peep holes around the outside. I kid you not, what I saw inside was a small cat.

I didn't think anything of the cat in the backpack really, because those kitty carrier bookbags are a thing now. Even celebrities like Taylor Swift have backpacks for their cats. I wasn't taken aback until I got back to my spot on the beach.

I was laying on my towel reading my book. I had completely forgotten about the couple with the cat when I see that same couple walking the cat ON A LEASH up and down the beach. I couldn't help but chuckle. To be honest, I couldn't believe what I was looking at.

The couple didn't have a care in the world and went on with their little afternoon adventure like having a cat on the beach is something that everyone's used to seeing. There's no way they could've been mad at all the looks. Not that there were too many people left on the beach at that time in the day anyway, but seriously, how often do people see a CAT on the BEACH?? My guess is NEVER. Well, almost never, now.

I wish I would've gotten a picture, but because there were maybe 5 families left on the entire beach, I didn't want to draw too much attention. Still, if you've ever taken your puppy to the beach, then you have a pretty good idea in your head. Just replace the puppy with a cat and that's exactly what it was.

This leads me to my two important questions:

1.) WHY A CAT?! Sure, you've seen dogs on the beach before. What made you even think about taking your cat on the beach, though? Not that it's a huge deal, but most cats don't like water, so it seems like half the fun would already not be an option.

2.) Is it legal? There are a ton of rules about when you can have dogs on the beach and what permits you'd need to make that happen, etc. I can't imagine that there are many rules regarding cats on the beach. If dogs aren't allowed on the beach during the summer months, should cats be allowed?

I have so many questions about what I saw yesterday, but I can't say I'm mad about it. If you start taking the cat when it's still a kitten, you could probably acclimate him or her to the beach and it could be a pretty good time. Still, seeing a cat on a leash AND on a beach no less, is quite the sight.